Virtue and the Law
Sean Casten on our tasks amid the Constitutional crisis
[A thread by U.S. Representative Sean Casten (IL-6), original here and here]
Some morning thoughts on where we are in this constitutional crisis and what we all have to do — and believe — to get out of this with our democracy intact:
First, the idea that you could have a democracy based on rule of law is a radical idea, no less so today than it was 250 years ago. Most of human history depended on might-makes-right, all powerful rulers.
Trump has no respect for that idea or our 250 year old experiment, but he understands that Mad Max philosophy that governed most of human history. And therefore understands how fragile any democracy is.
And while Trump is the (only?) alpha dog in the GOP, the rest of the GOP is also hostile to our founders intent. They hold CPAC in Hungary to learn from Orban how to destroy democracy from within, not how to protect it from a despot’s excesses, after all.
Given that, it’s worth looking back to what our founders had to say about the need for virtue in a society. They were all schooled in Greek and Roman political philosophers. It was those principles that shaped the government they left for us.
George Washington:
“I hope I shall always posses firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider the most enviable of all titles: the character of an honest man”
James Madison:
“to suppose that any form of government will secure liberty or happiness without any virtue in the people is a chimerical idea”
Jefferson:
“We have spent the prime of our lives procuring the precious blessing of liberty. Let them spend theirs showing that it is the great parent of science and virtue; a nation will be great in both in proportion as it is free”
In other words: a representative government, based on the rule of law survives only so long as there is sufficient virtue in those tasked with carrying out those laws. And those moment we lose that virtue, we lose our liberty as well.
We cannot separate politics from law, nor assume that one is superior to the other. We put fallible humans in charge of carrying out the law, and trust that they will be virtuous only to the extent we trust that the electorate is virtuous and will choose wisely.
And therefore, there are two ways to destroy us from within. First by assuming that the LAW is fixed, immutable and somehow above human nature. Alternatively, by convincing the public that they are collectively without virtue.
The first is the tool of the authoritarian. Constitutional originalism, biblical literalism — they all flow from that destructive impulse. The Roberts Court is the leading proponent of this view in America today.
And the second is the tool of the demagogue. People cannot be trusted, so you must trust me. That is the tool of Orban, Putin, Hitler… and Trump.
Today’s GOP fights with itself over whether to prioritize their authoritarian or demagogic impulses but agree that a representative democracy based on equal application of the rule of law must be stopped.
Which brings back to Madison’s full quote. The central thesis of a representative democracy is not that the leaders will be virtuous but that the public will be. Read the whole thing:
I have observed, that gentlemen suppose, that the general legislature will do every mischief they possibly can, and that they will omit to do every thing good which they are authorised to do. If this were a reasonable supposition, their objections would be good. I consider it reasonable to conclude, that they will as readily do their duty, as deviate from it: Nor do I go on the grounds mentioned by gentlemen on the other side — that we are to place unlimited confidence in them, and expect nothing but the most exalted integrity and sublime virtue. But I go on this great republican principle, that the people will have virtue and intelligence to select men of virtue and wisdom. Is there no virtue among us? If there be not, we are in a wretched situation. No theoretical checks — no form of government can render us secure. To suppose that any form of government will secure liberty or happiness without any virtue in the people, is a chimerical idea. If there be sufficient virtue and intelligence in the community, it will be exercised in the selection of these men. So that we do not depend on their virtue, or put confidence in our rulers, but in the people who are to choose them.
It’s on all of us. To be virtuous. To know that the law is a partial and incomplete representation of a higher, virtuous, ethical standard. To be vocal and righteous in defense of that standard. And to trust that our neighbors feel the same way.
Because the minute we lose our virtue — or our trust — this whole thing collapses. So go get into some good trouble today. We need you. /fin
text by Sean Casten, March 7, 2025
David August is an award-winning actor, acting coach, writer, director, and producer. He plays a role in the movie Dependent’s Day, and after its theatrical run, it’s now out on Amazon (affiliate link). He has appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live on ABC, on the TV show Ghost Town, and many others. His artwork has been used and featured by multiple writers, filmmakers, theatre practitioners, and others to express visually. Off-screen, he has worked at ad agencies, start-ups, production companies, and major studios, helping them tell stories their customers and clients adore. He has guest lectured at USC’s Marshall School of Business about the Internet.
